Debates about voting and elections remain front and center as America lurches toward another presidential election. Republican frontrunner Donald Trump and many of his supporters persist in the mistaken belief that election fraud tilted the outcome of the 2020 election.
At the same time, civil rights groups say voting rights are under siege, in part since a court made it harder to enforce protection in the Voting Rights Act against racial discrimination. Rhode Island’s top official with responsibility for voting-related issues is Secretary of State Gregg Amore. So how does he feel about the outlook for small-d democracy as America hurtles toward 2024? What can be done to boost confidence in elections and dispel misinformation? And how did Amore, an East Providence resident, fare amid the traffic nightmare caused this week by the closing of the westbound part of the George Washington Bridge? I’m Ian Donnis and this week I’m going in-depth with Rhode Island Secretary of State Gregg Amore.
Ian Donnis: Welcome back to the Public’s Radio.
Gregg Amore: Thank you.
Ian Donnis: In addition to being Secretary of State, you are a resident of East Providence who commutes to your job at the Statehouse. What has your experience been like with the nightmare this week of traffic caused by the partial closing of the Washington Bridge?
Gregg Amore: I think similar to my fellow townies, it’s, it’s been a struggle, but you know, I’m fortunate, I can be where I have to be, at a certain time, and, there’s not a lot of pressure on me.
I feel for the folks who are hourly workers, who need to be at a place at a certain time, they need to get their kids to school, that’s kind of who I’m, I’m really concerned about. But it’s been about a 45 minute to an hour ride, which it normally takes me about eight minutes.
Ian Donnis: Governor McKee and DOT Director Peter Alviti say the situation could not have been avoided. They say a catastrophe was avoided, thankfully, and that an inspection in July did not reveal the damage that led to the closing of the bridge. Are you satisfied by their explanation?
Gregg Amore: I’m not a structural engineer, so I’m satisfied by what I’ve heard, and I know they’re focused on the repairs and the adjustments and the new lane on 195 East. I think there will be time, and I’m hearing of calls for oversight hearings, there’ll be time to look at this and the whole process and determine whether or not we could have done better, but right now I think the focus should be on making sure we repair the bridge and get the other artery moving as quickly as possible.
Ian Donnis: Well, let’s switch gears to talk about some issues more related to your work as Secretary of State. The Voting Rights Act, passed in 1965, is one of the hallmarks of the civil rights movement. An unexpected U. S. Supreme Court ruling this year upheld a key part of the Voting Rights Act, but some observers say it remains under siege. Do you agree? And if so, what are the implications for those of us here in Rhode Island?
Gregg Amore: I do agree, that, that there’s a serious, whittling away of the, impact of the Voting Rights Act. And just recently, court decided that suits could only be filed by government entities in certain states, not, not across the board, rather than, let’s say, the ACLU or a civil rights organization. Which has so often been the case. You know, I think Rhode Island has done a very good job of providing strong access to the ballot and we’ve improved that, over the course of the last few years. So I don’t think there’s an impact on Rhode Island, but there could be, you know, Things change, times change, political parties change, and so I’m concerned because I think the Voting Rights Act was, was essential to make sure, that Americans could fairly access the ballot, no matter their zip code, no matter their, race or ethnicity.
Ian Donnis: Here in Rhode Island, the most high profile voting issue this year was the signature gathering controversy that undermined Sabina Matos’s campaign in the 1st Congressional District. What are your main takeaways from that episode?
Gregg Amore: So I think it was a good lesson for all of us who gather signatures to access the ballot, to make sure that our campaigns are well informed of the process and that we take a little more responsibility, centrally through the campaign. But our office is prepared to introduce legislation this session that will tighten up that process and that will specifically give the Board of Elections the ability to react in real time when they encounter an irregularity or fraud or, something like, what happened with the Matos, signatures. It’ll also allow them to be in constant communication. It will actually force them to be in constant communication with the local boards of canvassers so that the information is flowing freely and everybody is aware that a situation has occurred.
Ian Donnis: The Board of Elections, when this issue was happening, decided not to subpoena the campaign workers who had gathered the questionable signatures. Was that the right move in your view?
Gregg Amore: Yeah, I think an attorney general’s investigation is ongoing and, and I think we should let that play out and, and see what that produces. You know, I was more concerned that the board didn’t react, in real time, when they could have in regard to the challenges that Don Carlson had identified. I think they could have done that. I came out, I believe I said that to you. I came out early and said, They have the ability under law to do this review immediately. They chose not to. I think they regretted that. And eventually they did do the review.
Ian Donnis: We’re talking here in mid December with a little bit less than a year until the next presidential election. Donald Trump has a commanding lead on the GOP side and he keeps spreading misinformation and lies about the 2020 election. What is your perspective as a Democrat with some bipartisan responsibility on voting and elections about why so many Americans believe him on these kind of outright distortions and lies.
Gregg Amore: I think historically we have always seen questions about certain elections. What we have not seen is these questions, this skepticism, this outright lie coming from the very top of the political food chain. And that’s significant. President Trump has a great number of followers. He received a great number of votes. He has a bully pulpit. He has a platform to talk about this all the time. We’ve never really seen that before in American history. You could go back to Gore v. Bush. You know, Al Gore, had a case and he followed that case through the court system. he followed every avenue he could and then he conceded. And I think this is one of the most dangerous things, for the survival of our democracy, that a major political figure is questioning what has been declared by his own administration, his own appointees, as the most secure election in American history.
Ian Donnis: Well, to dig down on that a little bit more, if trust in elections can be eroded to the point where millions of people don’t have confidence in just a couple of years, how do we as a country come back from that?
Gregg Amore: Yeah, I think it’s about folks like me making sure we get the messaging out. And the National Association of Secretaries of State has really engaged in a program to make sure that citizens know where they can get good information and we’re seeking them to come to us so that we can share that good information.
On a local level, we are engaged, and we will be right up until election day in 2024, in an election integrity, open house, so to speak, town hall. We’ve, visited Exeter, Coventry, and East Providence thus far, and we’re asking folks to come. It’s been well attended in all three locations, and give us their concerns.
And we explain that we bring with us Rob Rock, and our elections director, Kathy Placencia, and we explain down to the most minute detail. how the process works. I think when people hear from a human being, not social media, not one of their cable news networks, when they hear from a human being who is on the front lines, they have a tendency at least to think and question what they assume to be true.
Ian Donnis: You’re continuing an effort started by your predecessor, Nelly Gorbea, to create a new state archive to house and display the treasures of colonial history in Rhode Island. The good news is that there’s a lot of support. People like this idea. Governor McKee has indicated some support. The hard part is coming up with the money to pay for it. What do you say to that?
Gregg Amore: Sure. We know that, and the Governor and I have had these discussions, as well as the Speaker of the House and the Senate President and I. We know that this will take an all hands on deck approach. We’re going to need federal support in the way of some sort of grant. We’re going to need capital, funding. We’re going to need to ask the people of Rhode Island to vote for a bond. and then we’re going to need some philanthropic help. So we know that. but if we can get the state to commit to a bulk of that funding, maybe more than half of what we project the total cost, I think we’re in a good position to access federal funding and then, raise dollars to support this.
I say this all the time because it’s true, you know, there’s a practical need for this. We have about 15 percent of these treasures that are being stored, not according to best practices. And so we’ve had a great discussion about maintenance and preservation over the course of the last few days. The same applies to these documents, which are irreplaceable. And we should be storing them according to best practices. And more importantly, we should, or as importantly, we should have Rhode Islanders and others be able to access these in a museum setting.
Ian Donnis: Beyond what you said earlier about the state board of elections, what is top of mind for you for your legislative agenda in 2024?
Gregg Amore: Yeah well, I mentioned the first agenda item, but we are also pushing again for same day voter registration. We think that’s important. That’s another way for folks to access the ballot who may just happen to have moved in within that 30 day span and are unable to vote. That would require a constitutional change.
Ian Donnis: Quick question on that. I understand the argument in support. Some people say that could be subject to manipulation, that if a candidate tries to register a lot of voters at the last minute, what do you say to that argument?
Gregg Amore: Well, I think the same people that are making that argument are also folks who are making the argument for voter ID, which is fine.But this assures voter ID. You cannot register and vote under a same day voter registration process unless you’re presenting proof of your residency and, and a photo ID. So, you know, people can register voters at any time, they could register them on day 31, but, but this is an opportunity. And I always think of the person who has just become an American citizen. They’ve done everything they’re supposed to do over the course of five or seven years, law abiding and they become an American citizen, this great responsibility that they have now to vote as an American citizen. They’ve been residents here for beyond, four or five years, certainly beyond 30 days.
And that may, that may happen on October 25th and they can’t vote. And I, and I think we should, we should be accommodating folks who are just getting engaged. Even if that is right before the election, we should be accommodating them and always err on the side of enfranchisement.
Ian Donnis: Are you committed to running for reelection as secretary of state in 2026?
Gregg Amore: Yes.
Ian Donnis: You are a Democrat, but as I said earlier, you have some bipartisan responsibilities around voting in Rhode Island. I’m sure you’ve noticed the struggles of Republicans in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. They’ve really bogged down in recent years. What is your observation about what the GOP needs to do differently to, to help have a more competitive two party system?
Gregg Amore: Well, I can speak to Rhode Island, because I know Rhode Island better. And I think, Gerry Leonard is a good example of the type of candidate that Republicans should start to put forward in Rhode Island. And so you and I would call those old New England Republicans or Chafee Republicans.The national playbook does not work here in Rhode Island for Republicans. And what, what has happened is Republicans in Rhode Island, and many of my former colleagues in the General Assembly don’t fit this bill, but Republicans in Rhode Island have kind of taken on the talking points, of the national party. And that really is not a recipe for success in Rhode Island. Look, we’re, we’re so much better off with a strong two party system, both nationally and here in Rhode Island, it creates a better democracy, more debate, more competitive elections, that’s healthy, but, but I would say that the Republican Party needs to shift back toward the center, and back toward its New England, Republican roots.
Ian Donnis: Rhode Island Secretary of State Greg Amore, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you, Ian.
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December is typically a slower time for the news. But the mess with the Washington Bridge loomed over Rhode Island in the run-up to the holidays. Governor Dan McKee staked out a visible place in the news in the days after news broke about the bridge closing. But the governor was initially out of sight, and he got testy later when asked by a reporter about whether changes are needed at the state transportation agency. This week offered a window on how McKee pursues his job in the midst of a crisis. You can read more about that in my Friday TGIF column posting around 4 this afternoon on what used to be known as Twitter @IanDon and the publics radio dot org.
That’s our show for this week. Our producer isJames Baumgartner.
I’m Ian Donnis …. and I’m taking time off over the next two weeks, so this is our last Political Roundtable of 2023. I want to wish all our listeners a happy holiday season and to thank you for tuning in. I’ll see you on the radio in 2024.
